On her way to the village shop, Emily suddenly recognised the mother of her first love in the elderly woman walking toward her. To her surprise, the woman recognised her too and couldnt hold back her tears.
For the first time in ten years, Emily was driving down the lane where she had grown up, in a small village in the Cotswolds. Though she now sat in an expensive car, she felt anything but secure about her returnfloods of uncomfortable childhood memories rushed over her. Long ago, she had sworn never to set foot here again, yet something tugged her back to the village where she had been born and raised.
Emily had been raised by her mother, Margaret, after her father passed away before she turned three. She knew him only from photographs. The two lived modestly: Margaret worked as a local vet but had little time for a vegetable garden and didnt earn much.
“Dont fret, my love,” Margaret often said. “As long as youre happy and healthy, everything else will fall into place.”
Emily grew into a beautiful young woman, making her a sought-after bridethough without much of a dowry to offer. At a village fête, she met a boy named Oliver from a nearby market town. For Emily, it was her first true love, which worried her mother. Oliver came from a wealthy family, and Margaret feared he might discard her daughter once the initial infatuation faded. Emily reassured her, convinced Oliver was sincere and that money meant little to him. After six months of walks and dates, he brought his parents to ask for Emilys hand. But the moment his mother saw the modest cottage, she turned pale. She said nothing, yet sowed unease in Emilys heart.
The wedding was set for the first Saturday in October. That morning, Emily felt strangely anxious without knowing why. Her friends helped pin up her hair and adjust her wedding dressbut Oliver never arrived. Her godfather, a close family friend, went to see what had happened, though Emily already suspected there would be no wedding.
“Whatever you say, I wont let my son ruin his life,” Olivers mother told the godfather.
Emily wept until dawn. And Oliver, under his parents pressure, abandoned her without warning. Her great love flickered out like a candle flame.
The next day, Emily packed her old suitcase and boarded the first bus to the city. There, she found workfirst as a waitress, then as a kitchen assistant. When an opportunity arose to work abroad and earn better wages, she hesitated little. While overseas, she received word from relatives that her mother, Margaret, had passed away. But there was no turning back; Emily was already on the plane.
Years passed. She worked hard, first for meagre wages, then something better, saving what she could. Yet the wound of her first love never fully healed: she had never married, and resentment toward Oliver and his parents lingered.
Now, after all this time, Emilys sudden return to her village left some hardly recognising her. The once-shy, sweet girl had become an elegant woman, smartly dressed but with the same warm smile. Only her eyes held a quiet sadnesseven when she laughed.
One day, on her way to the village shop, Emily froze when she realised the elderly woman approaching her was none other than Olivers mother. The old woman looked up, recognised Emily, and burst into tears.
“Emily… is it really you? Please forgive me, child. I ruined your lifeand my sons. I only wanted the better match for him, and in doing so, I broke him. After losing you, he never loved again. He drowned his sorrows in drink. Thats my burden to bear now.”
Emily felt pity for Olivers mother. The woman looked frail and weary. In that moment, the bitterness she had carried for years melted awayshe saw that those who had broken her heart had paid a steep price: the loss of their own happiness.
